Another Time
by WildArm
Summary: There was a time they called him the Hero of Time, Wielder of Evil's Bane, Vanquisher of Ganondorf. But what happens after Link's adventure? Link's thoughts of that fateful battle and recollection of events that took place afterward. Post TP. COMPLETE!


Another Time

There was a time they called him the Hero of Time, the Vanquisher of Ganondorf, the Savior of Hyrule. Now, he was just another mercenary in search of a job and more coin to bolster his wallet. No one could ever know who or what he was out of fear of _her_ finding him as a result.

His recent acquisition saw five hundred Rupees make their way to him from a simple job—a search and rescue—something he was all too familiar with. He was one of the most sought after mercenaries in the land, his success rate almost one hundred percent. He was known as a fierce warrior and silent as the wind, never asking for more than he needed to survive until the next job.

He patted his horse's mane and ran his hand underneath her neck soothingly, the horse whinnying before galloping. She was his constant companion and the closest thing he could call friend; she was there for it all, one of his pillars of strength, and remained so all through the years.

The man and his horse stopped to set up camp by a river, starting a small fire with wood that he had gathered. As he unpacked and fed his horse, he took a look at himself through the water of the river; when once he was young, he was now old. When once he was handsome, he was now weathered. He studied all the hard lines in his face and the misshapen beard he has grown; he will never be able to grow it fully because of the scar that took up half of his face.

_Link_, he thought, _your name is Link. Don't you remember?_

The scar left upon his right cheek by Ganondorf started to burn, recalling memories of times passed, the sting of the blade and the smell of warm copper never escaping his mind. He closed his eyes and ran an index finger over the old wound, feeling the groove of the scar in a straight line before careening upward, finishing just short of his eye.

_Another inch and I would've been blind_, Link thought with relief. _But I'll always have something to remember him by…he made sure of that._

Ganondorf was every bit of the warrior he was said to be and more; fierce, strong, intimidating, intelligent…traits that any master tactician or general embodies all rolled into one powerful being. It was his lust for power that ultimately brought his demise.

Link thought back to that day, Ganondorf's mouth wide with the pain of having the Master Sword plunged through his breast, Link's blood dripping onto the massive man's face. Link gritted his teeth, his tunic shredded to pieces, exposing many cuts and abrasions that covered his chest. Putting all his force into the stab, Link twisted the blade to further the damage.

But it did not end there as Link and Zelda observed. As they turned to walk away from the battlefield, the Gerudo King found his way back onto his feet, breathing heavily.

"Do not think it ends here…" Ganondorf had said, stumbling, the Master Sword protruding from his chest. "The history of light and shadow will be written in blood…"

He took a massive step towards Zelda and Link, both of whom were stunned beyond belief that this man—this _demon_—could endure so much punishment and still continue to menace them.

Link remembered taking a step forward, pushing Zelda behind him, the blood seeping through the wound in his cheek. He remembered being afraid, knowing that he had nothing in his power with which to combat Ganondorf should he continue his onslaught. Lucky for them, the Gerudo King stopped and seemingly died on his feet, standing as a tall, proud figure amongst Zelda and Link, as if to say _'I will not give you the satisfaction of seeing me meet my demise on my back.'_

Link breathed a sigh of relief, turned to Zelda and nodded encouragingly. He received a soft, delicate hand to his cheek that stained her white glove red. He closed his eyes to the softness of her hand and the warmth of her light as it shone off him. She looked dismayed, he remembered, wondering if he was in pain; he just took her hand delicately and rubbed it slowly up and down the side of his face, the relief that they were both safe a decent price to pay for the pain he was in.

"Are you well?" she asked. "I can heal it."

Link shook his head. He was done with magic, done with the Twilight World and changing into a wolf. He wanted peace. Midna was gone, too, the pained expression she wore evident to him even to this day; she did not want to leave him, but knew she had a higher calling that awaited her.

"Link…I…See you later…" she had said, shedding a tear that shattered the Mirror of Twilight, a final exclamation point to end their adventure.

As promised, Link, along with Zelda, returned the Master Sword to the Pedestal of Time. He remembered sliding the sword into the smooth stone, finally releasing his grip from so mighty a weapon, the weight of the burden lifted from his shoulders. He remembered Zelda smiling at him as he walked away from the pedestal, knowing that Link was both upset and relieved that his adventure was over.

"You know, this doesn't mean it's over," she had tried to reassure him, taking his hand into hers. "We can rebuild…together…"

Link remembered looking down at his hand in hers, her slender fingers laced around his in a loose grip. He could have kissed her then and almost did, the two of them growing ever closer to one another. Instead, Zelda reached in and kissed the raw scab upon his cheek, brushing her hand lightly against it afterward.

"It suits a hero like you," she had said, referring to his wound.

_Hero? I'm just a boy from Ordon. _

She embraced him, locking her arms around his back, stepping on her tiptoes in order to remain at eye level with him. He could do nothing more than return the embrace, smelling the sweet scent of lilacs in her hair, intoxicating him. They remained like that for what seemed like hours, the only sounds their beating hearts and shallow breathing.

"What will we do now, Link?" she had asked, still not breaking their embrace. "Now that it's over, will you go back to Ordon? I was hoping that…no, it's silly."

Link had no response for her; he knew in which direction the conversation was heading, but thought it best to keep those thoughts away for as long as he possibly could. He'll never forget what Midna had told him before she had returned to the Twilight World.

"You love her, don't you, Link?" she had asked before reaching the Mirror of Twilight. She seemed disappointed in his silence almost as much as she was in the fact that she was not at the receiving end of Link's affection. "Remember, the three of you are incarnations of those that came before, and will continue this cycle until the end of time or until Ganondorf is destroyed for good. I cannot tell you what to do with the remainder of your life, Link…but I _can_ try to guide you from making a grave error of judgment based on your emotions. Ganondorf will return one day just as he has in the past."

Link was informed that he was neither the first nor the last to face Ganondorf. From what he can recall, his past incarnation was successful in thwarting the evil king's tyranny just as he was able to, but he wondered…did any ever _fail_? And, if so, what happened to those time lines? Did the heroes who vanquished Ganondorf fall in love with and marry the princess in the end? Did they father children with the woman they loved and live out the rest of their days in peace?

Leaving the Pedastal of Time, Link saw a lone daisy sprouting from the ground. He bent down and delicately picked the daisy, turning to Zelda and placing it in her hair, the latter blushing and smiling at him.

"It's beautiful, thank you," she had said.

But before Link could reply, Zelda kissed him deeply and softly, taking him by surprise. At first, his eyes were wide with shock, until the tenderness of the moment allowed him to close his eyes and wrap his arms around her.

Link saddled Epona and looked down to Zelda, who had her hands clasped together. He made sure his shield was buckled securely before he took the reins.

"When will you return?" Zelda asked, worry seeping into her soft face. "Will I ever see you again, Link?"

Link smiled softly and nodded, bending to hold her chin softly between his thumb and index finger. "Another time," he said, studying her as he said it.

And with that, Link gave Epona a little kick and she galloped, Zelda disappearing as she picked up speed. The memory of that day and the gallop through the field faded with time, much like Link's identity. How could he ever face her again after all this time, leaving the way he did without so much as a goodbye? Will she accept him, welcome him with open arms?

_Will she still love me?_ Link thought. _All I did, I did to preserve Time's Law; I could not mix the bloodline in fear of what the repercussions would be. Zelda will find a man who will love her, cherish her, and give her all the joy she deserves. As for me…_

Link opened his eyes and felt the coolness of the wind soothe him. As he walked back to the small fire with Epona grazing nearby, Link saw something that made him pause. Walking over to it, he bent down and studied the lone daisy growing in a patch of grass.

'_It's beautiful, thank you,'_ her words resonated in his mind before she kissed him. She was so soft, so delicate, as if she would crumble at the slightest amount of force. But she was strong, too, stronger than most; Link could feel the passion burning through her. In an instant, Zelda would give her life for her people as any honest and just ruler would.

Link delicately picked the daisy and stood up, twirling it in his fingers, examining it.

'_Will I ever see you again, Link?'_ she had asked, worry in her eyes, the sadness drowning her voice.

Link felt the tear that fell from his eye sliding down the scar on the right side of his face. His heart broke at the recollection of such a memory. He closed his eyes and thought about the beautiful princess with the piercing blue eyes and lilac-fragranced hair.

"Another time," he said aloud, hearing his voice echo and drown out in the stillness of the night.

_{break}_

Author's Note: Hey, all. I was listening to the vocal version of "Ballad of the Goddess" from Skyward Sword and was inspired to write this piece about Zelda and Link. I know that the theory of reincarnation doesn't necessarily go along with the mixing of the bloodlines, but I had fun at working with the theory that they could never be together until Ganon was gone for good, lest the reincarnation/bloodline process be destroyed altogether.

At first, I wasn't sure which game I was going to write about—first was ALttP, then OoT, then SS—but TP was the one which I ultimately picked. (I've been playing Zelda since the early 90's so I was conflicted many times.) I really hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please read and review to let me know what you thought. God Bless.

- Wild

PS: The link to the vocal version of "Ballad of the Goddess" I mentioned earlier is below. Just type in youtube before the .com to reach the video, as the full link is being cut off. The instrumental and vocals are done by MerryberryMusic and JoyDreamerJourney, respectively. Needless to say, it is very well done, so go drop them a comment or a "like" if you got the time. =)

.com/watch?v=NF5VKnERPtA


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